'Galactica' guy preps revamped 'Woman'

Eick and Kalogridis will exec produce a new take on “Bionic,” a 1970s spinoff of “The Six Million Dollar Man” in which Lindsay Wagner played tennis pro-turned-superwoman Jamie Sommers. Skein aired for two seasons on ABC before shifting to NBC in 1977 for its final year.

“It’s a complete reconceptualization of the title,” Eick told Daily Variety. “We’re using the title as a starting point, and that’s all.”

NBC U Television Studio is producing the new take, which has been given a script commitment by the Peacock.

Eick and scribe Ronald D. Moore turned Sci Fi’s Peabody Award-winning “Battlestar” into a series vastly different from its predecessor, making it a metaphoric examination of the post-9/11 world. Eick and Kalogridis are planning a similar “re-imagination” of “Bionic Woman.”

Instead of focusing on terrorism and militarism, the new “Bionic” will explore the role of professional women in contemporary society and how they juggle their various roles.

“It’s using the idea of artificial technology as a metaphor for what contemporary women sometimes feel is necessary to do everything that needs to be done,” Eick said.

Eick, whose shingle is based at NBC U, said he’d been considering various titles in the Universal library that would be good candidates for a “Battlestar”-like revamp. He decided to take a stab at “Bionic,” and then sought a meeting with Kalogridis.

“She met with me under the guise of a general meeting, even though I knew I was there to romance her about ‘Bionic Woman,'” Eick said.

Kalogridis, who has a busy feature slate, wasn’t looking to do a new TV project — but changed her mind when she heard Eick’s pitch.

“She basically indicated to me that ‘Bionic Woman,’ and the possibility of one day being able to do a (new take) on it, was one of the reasons she got into showbiz in the first place,” he said.

While Eick wouldn’t discuss details of the new “Bionic Woman,” he did indicate the technology will be much advanced from 30 years ago.

“It’s going to be a meaningful departure” from the original, he said, using words such as “nanotechnology” to hint at what’s in store.

Kalogridis is working on a pair of projects with James Cameron, penning “The Dive” and co-writing “Battle Angel” with the helmer (Daily Variety, Feb. 27). She also wrote the Russian-language “Night Watch,” “Pathfinder” and “Alexander.”